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Best Theme Park Show You Have Seen.


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I really like the two diving shows at Canada's Wonderland. The Victoria Falls divers actually dive off the front of the mountain, it's very cool. The other one is in the harbour-like area of medieval faire, near the pirate ship thingy. Very cool also. Except my friend Scott made us watch the ENTIRE SHOW when we were there last summer! (http://www.angelfire.com/crazy4/ncoaster/pcw.html) He's on the diving team at our (my former) college so I guess I forgive him. He also used to be an ACE member! (he's the only coaster enthusiast I know in real life!)

 

Any of you who visit an amusement park with me in the future will come to know how impatient I am with shows! they must be 15 minutes or less! i want the coaster/thrill ride action!

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Wishes @ WDW's Magic Kingdom

Most of BGW's shows

Carousel of Progress (World's Longest Running Stage Show)

Enchanted Tiki Room (1996 @ WDW)

 

If you count parades as shows: (it's staged in some sense)

Spectromagic; the best parade I have ever seen...and the theme song is so awesome that it gets stuck in your head.

 

WORST SHOWS:

Every show at Splish Splash Long Island

Enchanted Tiki Room Under New Management (Currently @ WDW)

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Oh, I'd like to second Billy Hill and the Hillbillies. Gold team baby! Best park show ever! Even if your not a show person...you must see this one!!

 

Your mention of Billy Hill actually made me think of my very first theme park shows, or more precise, where they were... in Disneyland, USA.

 

Golden Horseshoe Revue - Slue Foot Sue & The Original cast

March, 1963 ( I was ten!)

 

Golden Horseshoe Revue - 20th Anniversary Show

(with Original cast, like Wally Boag!)

September, 1975

 

Those were actual shows, with just a cast, music and a way of totally involving an audience during their visit to the park. It got so huge, that wait times could be as bad as E-ticket attractions!

 

I have good memories (and still have souvenirs!) of both visits there, and have to say those were by far, the best ones - my first ones, lol.

 

 

(BTW - Billy Hill & Hillbillies played/plays there at the Gold.Shoe in DL. Yes/No, Don?)

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Irish Thunder - BGW

Moroccan Roll - BGT

Candlelight Processional - Epcot

Katonga - BGT

Fantasmic - MGM

Sindbad - IOA

Golden Horseshow Dancing Girls - Magic Kingdom

 

So ... John ... how many of these have you worked on?

 

Well, I vocal coached Moroccan Roll, and I played organ for Candlelight Processional at EPCOT from 1999-2003. I have yet to work with the Katonga cast, and when I was at BGW, I worked on "Totally Television" and "Rockin' the Boat."

 

As far as my favorites go, I am partial to LIVE singing and music, and since I play Hoop-Dee-Doo, I will go with that!

 

LOVED Hunchback, Pocahontas, and Doug Live at MGM Studios. I really enjoy Tarzan Rocks, but it will be closing soon.

 

Wishes never fails to impress me with the pyro and the seamless integration of music. I am also partial to Illuminations circa 1989 when they used to light up each country and play corresponding music. USA got "Rhapsody in Blue."

 

Oh, I almost forgot. The parades at Tokyo Disneyland and their Christmas Show in front of the castle. I was blown away by the sheer number of performers. The Christmas Show had to have about 100-150 dancers and characters on that stage, and the parades were equally impressive.

 

I also loved the shows at Opryland which used live singing and music. Anyone else remember "Country Music USA" or "And the Winner Is?" They don't write them like that anymore (mainly 'cuz they would cost so much to mount and maintain!"

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The best show I've ever seen at an amusement park was the first show I ever saw at an amusement park: "Rockin' the Boat" at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in 1999. I loved it! Some of the songs they sang still get stuck in my head today.

 

Rockin' the Boat was GREAT! I even bought the CD soundtrack I loved it so much.

 

And the show they had the seasons before that (I can't remember the name, but it was a show of TV music through the years, and hosted by Dick Van Dyke on TV's all around the theatre, which became the portholes for Rockin' The Boat).

 

BGW's shows are usually pretty awesome. Imaginique was great. Their Halloween shows are really great, especially considering they only run for a few weeks every year. Monster Stomp is the best of the Halloween shows. You have to love any show where the performers are in bondage gear...

393985949_Halloween04013.jpg.9c1d8d6bb8b864e8cf63a031690b5a56.jpg

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The best show I've ever seen at an amusement park was the first show I ever saw at an amusement park: "Rockin' the Boat" at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in 1999. I loved it! Some of the songs they sang still get stuck in my head today.

 

Rockin' the Boat was GREAT! I even bought the CD soundtrack I loved it so much.

 

And the show they had the seasons before that (I can't remember the name, but it was a show of TV music through the years, and hosted by Dick Van Dyke on TV's all around the theatre, which became the portholes for Rockin' The Boat).

 

BGW's shows are usually pretty awesome. Imaginique was great. Their Halloween shows are really great, especially considering they only run for a few weeks every year. Monster Stomp is the best of the Halloween shows. You have to love any show where the performers are in bondage gear...

 

That show was "Totally Television" which ran from 1993-1996. I worked on it 1994-96, and I have a ton of pics and videos from each and every cast (3 per year). Some of the famous alumni of that shows include Matt Cavenaugh(1997) who went on to star in URBAN COWBOY on Broadway and Taye Diggs (1993) who was in RENT and has been in dozens of movies and TV shows. Just thought you'd like to know!

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"Remember.. Dreams come true" at Disneyland

"Fantasmic!" at Disneyland

 

The shows at Fiesta Village at Knotts

The Indian Dances at Knott's

There used to be a 3D show at Knott's where you went on a roller coaster.. Montezooma I think... and you swam with sharks... This was way back when "Snap your neck" Vekoma was "Corckscrew".

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  • 8 months later...

So so SOOOOO MANY choices...

 

I love:

 

Lava Jive - Kings Dominion 1997

Let the Good Times Roll - Dollywood 1998 - 2001

Rockin the Boat - Busch Gardens VA - 1997-2000

Dick Clark's American Bandstand Classics - Opryland - 1996

I Hear America Singing - Opryland (years!!)

 

All the old Six Flags revues from the late 80s - early 90s produced by Thom McGhee, David Blackburn and Mark Brymer... Celebrate America; Peace, Love, Inc.; Freedom Nation, This is America; Anything with WB in title, etc etc... When Six Flags put the Real Dollars in the shows!

 

The Kids of the Kingdom back in the 1980s... Back in the days of Show Biz Is and the shows that featured REAL music besides the same old Disney songs we have all heard 10 million times. When it was kinda hip!!

 

Unfortunately, the Large Lavish Music Revue in theme park is kinda dead these days... Everything is going more towards either story shows (all disney stuff, Katonga) or Concept shows (Riverdance, Blast, Stomp ripoffs)... It's definitely sad. Theme Park Entertainment hit it's Height in the late 80s with it's behometh shows - Huge Casts, Live Music (usually 7 person band), Huge Sets and of course - AN AUDIENCE THAT CARES... All that changed in the 90s as more and more the focus became on the rides and thrill attractions...

918430570_WarnerBros.RockinCountrySFGA1999(WinCE).jpg.c95fc4934e3255ca3a626514004e7a7e.jpg

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My top 5 best shows:

 

Best Stage Show:

1. Festival of the Lion King at Disney's Animal Kingdom

2. Katonga at Busch Gardens Africa

3. Around The World On Ice at Busch Gardens Africa

4. Bill & Ted's Excellent Halloween Adventure at Universal Orlando during

Halloween Horror Nights.

5. 3-Way tie: Aladdin at Disney's California Adventure, Tarzen Rocks at

Disney's Animal Kingdom & Beauty & The Beast at Disney-MGM

Studios.

 

Best 3D Show/attraction:

1. Terminator 2: 3D Battle Across Time at Universal Studios Florida

2. It's Tough To Be A Bug at Disney's Animal Kingdom

3. Muppet Vision 4D: Disney-MGM Studios

4. Shrek 4D at Universal Studios Florida

5. Tie: Haunts of the old Country at Busch Gardens Europe

& Mickey's Philharmagic at the Magic Kingdom

 

Best Fireworks Show:

1. Illuminations at Epcot

2. Fantasmic at Disney-MGM Studios

3. Wishes at The Magic Kingdom

4. Disneyland's 50th Aniversary Fireworks Show

5. Mystify at Sea World Orlando

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^

 

The future. The polar ice caps have melted and the continents are deep beneath the waves. The survivors live on these floating fortresses know as Atolls, in this place called Water World. Brave explorers in search of the last remaining dryland on the planet, but the Deacon, maniacal leader of a group of evil raiders called Smokers, is determined to find dryland first. He’s ensured that no explorer has ever returned….Until now!

 

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OH, one more post! I have not seen it in person yet, but I did watch it on the internet:

 

WICKED at Universal Studios Japan. Yes, this is a 35 minute version of the Broadway musical WICKED. I was skeptical too until I saw the video.

 

WOW! They basically boiled the show down to the best 35 minutes and included all the big songs including "One Short Day," "Popular," "The Wizard and I" and "Defying Gravity" where Elphaba actually flys.

 

The vocalists they hired are amazing. They use an all Japanese cast except for the role of Elphaba which is played by a Westener (3 girls from the USA and one from Australia).

 

To see a short clip of it, check out the Universal Studios Japan audition site:

 

http://www.universalauditions.com/Japan/

wicked-logo.jpg.1bf31013aefd75574f4e07cfe4bacf87.jpg

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